There's life in the old dog yet
by Madame Gaston 24
Summary: When Mick has a terrible accident while hunting pigs, Sophie is worried about him getting old. But all hell breaks loose when Mick has to prove to her and himself that there's still life in the old dog yet.
1. Chapter 1

When Mick had told Sophie he had brought her something shiny for her birthday, a pre-owned off roader hadn't been what she had had in mind. She couldn't believe that he had brought it for her, a red shiny 4x4 jeep with a touch of rust but still it was hers! But no matter how much she loved it, she couldn't help but wish it was some other kind of shiny object he had brought her. Sophie knew though that she would never get that from Mick, it just wasn't him.

Standing outside their house on the dusty, sandy ground of the outback, Mick stood there grinning widely as she stood there in shock looking at her new vehicle, waiting with anticipation for the shower of love that he was expecting to follow.  
"Oh wow...Mick...I...its lovely" She gasped both in amazement that he'd buy such an expensive gift for her and maybe also as horrible as it might sound...disappointment.

Mick shrugged his shoulders as if the gift was nothing, what he was really waiting for was the voluntary affection that no amount of victims could ever replace or fake. He knew what it was like now and when victims tried to fake voluntary sex to try and save their own skins, it just made him even more angry and they died all the more violently.  
"Thought then you can go where you like, don't have to rely on me to take you" He explained.  
"What a...an amazing thoughtful gift" She said smiling, now she would be able to see her friends and family whenever she liked instead of only being able to go when Mick was either not at work or not too drunk.  
"Just make sure you carry enough gas!" Mick said seriously "Don't wanna end up rescuing your ass from being eating by dingoes" Sophie nodded and smiled at Mick's way of saying that he cared about her and didn't want her being hurt. "And another thing, rule number one of the outback always make sure you leave a note or tell someone where you're going, that way if you run into trouble I'll be able to find you easier" Mick said his tone deadly serious, the outback was dangerous and not something you took lightly.  
"I'll be fine I'm not a child" She chuckled, walking up to him and wrapping her arms wound his stomach.  
"Hmm you didn't grow up round here, the outback's tough girlie" He grumbled, he hated how Sophie as a city girl didn't really fully understand how dangerous the outback was. He was unsure whether he had done the right thing in buying her the jeep or whether he had just added some extra danger to her life.  
"Awww is Mick the deadly pig shooter worried about me?" She teased "My sweet, silly man" Sophie smiled, tiptoeing to kiss him. "Thank you so much I love it" She said kissing him again.  
"You owe me girlie" He laughed giving her a wide mischievous grin. Last year she would have been terrified by both that remark and by that smile, but now she knew exactly what he meant by it and it sent shivers of anticipation and excitement run through her body.

Mick took her hand and pulled her inside the house and then into their bedroom; he closed the door behind them and gave her a wicked smile.  
"Show me how much you love the jeep girlie" He grinned, Sophie bit her bottom lip. She loved how Mick made her feel, like she could be as bad and as dirty as she liked without a care in the world. Slowly she walked up to him and cupped him in between his legs with her hand, Mick's breath caught in his throat.  
"What do you want Mick?" She whispered in his ear, she heard him give a deep throaty groan as she rubbed his cock through his jeans.  
"Show me girlie" He groaned "Show me how much you like it" Slowly Sophie undid the zip of his trousers as she bit her bottom lip, not taking her eyes off his face, his eyes were closed and his mouth slightly open. She loved to see the enjoyment in his face and then she sunk down to the floor on her knees. Mick gasped and threw his head back at the amazing feeling as she took him inside her mouth. God he loved how she made him feel, no victim ever made him feel the way he did with her.

Sophie was always worried whenever Mick went to work pig hunting. He had been doing it since he was a young lad and she knew he was well experienced but she couldn't help but dwell on what would happen if something went wrong. She always had visions of him having an accident or being attacked by an animal, stranded and helpless in the outback with little water. The fact that she now had the jeep just in case of such an event brought her some comfort, that if he was hurt she could find him.

That night she had woke up in the middle of the night with a start; she bolted upright in bed and was covered in a light sweat. She had had a dream about a dead koala and in Australia that meant bad luck. In the morning as Mick got dressed in his jeans, blue vest and red checked shirt, she pleaded to Mick to delay his work just for a few days. She had a horrible feeling something bad was going to happen to him. But he just laughed at her superstitious mind.  
"Mick seriously, you're not as young as you used to be. I'm worried one day you're going to get hurt" She said sounding full of concern.  
"Sophie, when I get back and I'm fuckin' your brains out we'll see who's getting old" Mick growled, he gave her a kiss on the forehead and told her he would be back soon before driving off in his blue Ford F100 truck. She was glad that he'd left her a note of the area he would be, but she still prayed to God her dream was wrong!


	2. Chapter 2

Sophie sighed with frustration, why couldn't Mick just listen to her just once? The problem was Mick grew up in the outback, he had been born and raised in the middle of it and because of this Mick had a terrible habit of always thinking he knew better. Yes Sophie grew up in the cities but that didn't mean that she lacked common sense. She just wished that he would have taken her gut instinct seriously and just stayed home for the day.

Mick stalked several feet behind a wild boar, with his rifle raised keeping low to the ground to make sure he wasn't spotted. Having suffered from Polio when he was younger he still walked with a limp but he was usually able to walk quite quietly if he concentrated on his footing. Suddenly he felt the wind tip the back of his hat and he realised it had changed direction, Mick cursed under his breath as he realised he was in trouble. Fuck! He knew now that the wind was behind him and if the wind was behind him then the boar could smell him.

Suddenly the boar stopped walking, spun round to face him and grunted at him, its eyes burning with anger. It scrapped its hooves into the dirt as a warning. It approached Mick with confidence, showing him it wasn't afraid. Mick took a step back in retreat to try and prevent the boar from attacking. But the foot that stepped back stood on a round, smooth rock; his leg slipped out from under him and went with a snap as he fell into the dust. Mick gave a shout of agonising pain and clutched his leg.  
"Mother fucker!" He yelled, his loud voice caused the boar to give a loud angry growl and charge towards Mick who was curled up and swearing on the ground.

Mick saw his life flash before his eyes as he saw the red eyed, snarling wild boar stampede towards him, open mouthed and saliva dripping from its teeth.  
"Fuck" He swore to himself as the boar lowered its tusks as it got closer. Mick tried to roll out of the way of it, but with the agonising pain in his leg he was not quick enough for the boar. He gave a loud cry of agony as he felt the boar gore him in the thigh with its filthy tusks, frantically he searched for his knife that had got knocked out of its holder and into the dust during his fall.

He sighed with relief as he spotted his knife lying in the sand, he reached to grab it and swore in pain as the boar swung its head to the side and skewered his side with its tusks just as he stretched to grab the knife.

Mick grabbed the knife and turned back round to face the boar causing the tusk to go deeper into his side so he could see the boar as he thrust the knife under the boars chin and into its skull; the boar gave a pained squeal. Blood poured out onto him as he quickly pulled out the knife and the boar slumped to the ground with a thud. Mick threw his head back onto the dusty ground and let out the breath he had been holding in relief as he realised the boar was dead and he was alive!

Mick lay on the dusty sand exhausted, covered in both his and the wild boars blood. He had tried to stand but his leg was excruciating he knew it must be broken he had heard the bone crack. Even if he managed to get inside his truck he wouldn't be able to press the accelerator with his leg.

Mick groaned in agony as he tried to get his back off the ground so he could take off his belt, he wrapped it round his leg and threaded the belt through the buckle. He took in a deep breath as he quickly yanked it tighter around his thigh just above the wound to stop the blood and threaded the stopper through the hole to keep it in place. Mick cried out in pain as he did so, then looked down at the brown belt digging into his leg and looked at the wound which was now bleeding less. His only hope now was that Sophie would notice that he had been gone longer than normal and would come and find him and that the belt would make do until that time.

Sophie sat in the kitchen, nursing a cup of coffee as she anxiously looked at the clock. Mick was usually back by now if anything he was late even by Mick's standards. She tried to tell herself that everything was fine, that he'd probably stopped for a pint on the way home without thinking to let her know. But her gut instinct told her that something was wrong, very wrong! After what seemed like ages of trying to calm her nerves and the bad feeling she had, Sophie slammed the coffee down on the table, grabbed her keys and jumped into her jeep. Something told her that something bad had happened to Mick and dammit she was going to make sure he was ok!


	3. Chapter 3

Mick groaned in agony as he sat up, he clutched the wound on his side to try and stop the bleeding and blew a breath up towards his forehead to try and cool himself down. He could feel his uncovered skin starting to burn in the sun; he took of his hat and wiped a load of sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. He prayed to God Sophie would get here soon, he needed shade otherwise he knew sunstroke or heatstroke would kill him before the loss of blood did. He looked around for any sign of a tree that he could sit under for some shade and saw one several feet away. Mick let out a frustrating groan knowing how much pain it was going to cause him to get there but he knew he must.

His eyes went wide with an idea as he saw a large thick stick lying on the ground just out of reach, shuffling on his ass he shimmied closer to the stick and grabbed it. Mick exhaled a big breath siking himself up for heaving himself up onto his feet. Swearing under his breath, he used the stick like a cane and on his good leg heaved himself up to his feet.  
"Bastard!" He gasped as he accidently put weight on his injured leg, swaying slightly until he balanced himself. He knew he would never make it to his truck; and it was too dangerous to try. If he tried to get to the truck his heart would beat quicker and that would make him loose blood quicker. No! The tree was his only hope until Sophie found him.

Limping heavily and putting all his weight on the stick he slowly crossed the distance of the outback to the tree. Suddenly catching his foot on a rock caused him to collapse face first into the dust.  
"Fucking, God Dammit!" He cursed in pain, before yet again heaving himself up back up to get to the shade of the tree. Mick cursed himself as he hobbled to the tree; he had survived so much during his life. He had survived an abusive father, a stint in Vietnam, being attacked by Victims and being tortured by a victim's family and yet he had almost been killed by moving bacon. He swore at himself for being so stupid and not acting quickly enough, he began to wonder if he was getting slow in his old age but quickly pushed it from his mind.

Getting to the shade, Mick could instantly feel a small decrease in temperature. Sighing with relief and exhaustion he slowly eased himself to the floor at the base of the tree trunk. The only thing he could do now was sit and wait until Sophie found him. He looked down at his side; blood seeped through the gaps in his fingers and ran down the back of his hand. Mick suddenly had an idea he took off his shirt and wrapped it around his waist around the wound and tying it tightly around him to try and stop the blood, he groaned in agony. He could feel his head getting dizzy and his eyes drooped. Suddenly the world went black.

Sophie started to panic when she saw his abandoned car, she hadn't a clue on which way he would have walked. She was just about to guess and set off in a random direction when she looked onto the dusty ground and saw his foot prints, suddenly what little Mick had taught her about tracking came flooding back and she decided to drive in the direction the footprints were pointing.

Suddenly she saw a figure under a tree she jumped out of the car and grabbed her bottle of water, unsure how long it had been since he'd had a drink and ran towards the tree. Sophie gasped and covered her mouth with her hand and she saw Mick topless with his shirt tied round him and covered in blood. She saw his hairy chest heave as he breathed and sighed with relief, at least he was alive. Normally it would excite her to see Mick topless she loved his chest, but not today this was horrific.

Sophie tipped some water onto her hand and splashed it on his face in an attempt to revive him, Mick groaned and his head turned to the side. He squinted his eyes open, his eye sight was blurry and his head was spinning.  
"Its ok baby you're alive, but I need you to stand for me" She said softly raising her water bottle to his lips to help him drink. Mick groaned once he'd finished drinking greedily and shook his head, he didn't have enough energy anymore and he was tired of pain.  
"Come on Mick you're stronger than that, you never give up on anything, I'll help you" She encouraged getting her arms around him so she would be in the correct position to help lift him. His soft, tanned back was scolding hot, if she didn't move him soon she knew he'd be in danger of heat stroke  
"Right one, two, three….go!" She groaned taking the majority of his weight; Mick fell back down in agony at his throbbing leg.  
"Come on once more" Mick shook his head again, sweat coving his face "Mick if you want this hot piece of ass again you're going to have to get up!" Sophie snapped resorting to language and encouragement that Mick would understand. He took a deep sigh before heaving himself up as Sophie helped him.

Mick felt lightheaded and faint, his whole body filled with pain. He wanted to sleep, the only thing that was keeping him awake was the sound of her voice.  
"God Mick you're heavy" Sophie panted taking the brunt of his weight so there was less on his leg.  
"You're not so skinny yourself girlie" He croaked giving a weak chuckle; Sophie looked at him wide eyed with the biggest smile, she knew he didn't mean it but hearing his smart alec comments meant that he was still with her. She wasn't sure how much his future victims would appreciate it but her heart was set on saving her man.


	4. Chapter 4

Sophie groaned with exhaustion and slid down the wall onto the floor as she had finally gotten Mick into bed. But she couldn't rest for long, he was bleeding badly and she had to patch him up before she could rest. She placed a cool flannel on his forehead to bring down his temperature as she collected the equipment she'd need to patch up the wounds.  
"Right Mick, I'm not going to lie this is going to hurt" She said deadly serious as she took Mick's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.  
"Just do what you've gotta do girlie" He said through gritted teeth, giving her a nod of agreement.

Once Sophie had cleared all of the boar's blood off of Mick's body, she pulled the cork out of one of Mick's bottles of rum with her teeth and tipped it onto a rag.  
"Ready, this is going to sting" Sophie said, with Mick you had to prepare him for pain otherwise he lashed out and could end up accidently hurting her, she had learnt that when they had first met. Mick nodded and grabbed the duvet tightly in his fists, clenching his jaw ready for the agonising pain.

All he did was let out was a deep groan as she pressed the alcohol covered rag on the wound; his face was covered in sweat from the pain. She knew he wasn't fairing well otherwise there would be shouting, swearwords and smarmy comments but she could tell he wasn't conscious enough or have enough energy for that.  
"Shhh, I know, I know, what a waste of rum huh that's what you're thinking" Sophie said trying to lighten the situation and put them both on ease.

After washing her hands, she checked how deep the wound was. Sophie sighed with relief, he was lucky enough not to have had any internal organs punctured. But then that was Mick all over she thought to herself, forever unbelievably lucky. No one else would have got away with the things he had or survived the things he'd gone through. Mick was if nothing else a fighter and his luck were uncanny.

Sophie felt sick to her stomach as she prepared the needle, in order to sow up the wound. Once she had removed the shirt from around his stomach she could see clearly all of the scars that littered his body. It made her feel sick that Mick had been hurt as much as the scars told her. She was thankful though that the wound had stopped bleeding so she could simply sow up the wound. Mick moaned under his breath, barely conscious as she sewed up the wound.  
"I know Mick I'm sorry, I know it hurts" Her stomach was doing flips hearing his noises of pain. The thought popped into her mind that Mick often made his victims make the very same noises but she quickly pushed it out of her mind. That wasn't her Mick, not the one she knew.

Once the wound was sown and bandaged, Sophie looked at his leg with dread. Judging by the unnatural angle of his leg she knew it was broken. She decided making a splint was going to be the only way she was going to get his leg to heal. After finding some materials suitable she began to straighten Mick's leg. She was thankful that he'd slipped into unconsciousness by this point; she didn't think he could handle any more pain. Mick was a fighter but even he had his limits. Gently she applied after sun to as much of his burnt skin as she could before lying the blanket over him and then making her way to the couch for some much needed sleep.

In between the small amount of sleep she did have, Sophie lay awake on the sofa cursing herself and Mick. She had told him not to go; she had asked him to stay home just for that one day. But no he hadn't listened and now look what had happened. But she also blamed herself; she should have tried harder, argued more about it and convinced him to stay. She knew she couldn't lay all the blame on Mick.

Irritated that she couldn't get anymore sleep she decided to check on Mick. She sat on the bed next to him and gently stroked his greying black hair, if he was awake he'd never let her get away with that. He'd tell her to stop being such a soppy cunt. Looking down at his sleeping face Sophie could hardly believe he was capable of the horrors that he regularly committed, she didn't know the half of it but she had an idea. But she also felt relief too, he was here, her man was here, in their bed and alive. No matter what he did she couldn't help but love him.  
"You stupid, stupid silly man" She whispered, stroking his hair.  
"You're not quite Einstein yourself" Mick groaned slowly opening his eyes.

The grin that Sophie pulled hearing his voice again, stretched from ear to ear.  
"Oh Mick thank God" She exclaimed wrapping her arms around him.  
"Ahh careful girlie" He said in pain as she accidently touched his stitches. "What's wrong can't keep your hands off this body for five minutes?" Mick grinned.  
"I saved this body I can do what I like with it"  
"That sounds like a fucking damn good offer" Mick winked.  
"Don't even think about it, you could have gotten killed, you're not getting any till you're heeled" Sophie laughed.  
"Spoil sport" Mick mumbled rolling his eyes, but knowing that really he wasn't able to perform even if he really wanted to, Sophie smiled knowing that Mick was going to be alright. He was back to his flirty and sarcastic self.


	5. chapter 5

The problem with MIck was he was stubborn. He hated being told he couldn't do something, he was a free spirit and he belonged in the outback, so to be told he had to stay inside on bedrest really got Mick riled.

"I can't just fucking lay here girlie" He growled.

"No? Go on stand up and walk out then" Sophie snapped challenging him, knowing full well he wasn't able to.

"Fuck you" Mick pouted, folding his arms in a huff.

"Don't blame me Mick, it's not my fault you had a fall, if you were steadier on your feet you wouldn't have broken your leg" Sophie said hands on hips, lecturing him.

"I didn't have a fucking fall, bloody pensioners have falls" Mick growled.

"Call it what you like you fell over broke your leg that's a fall, maybe you should slow down abit? You're not as young as you used to be" Sophie said worried.

"Fuck you girlie I'm still young enough to show you a good time" Mick hissed turning his head away from her. Sophie sighed and walked out there was no point carrying on talking to her him when he was in that kind of mood.

Mick lay in bed sweating with pain, he cringed every time he breathed or moved.

"Urghhh Jesus feel like I've been ran over by a damn truck" Mick groaned clutching his wound.

"Should have been abit steadier on your feet then you wouldn't have fell"

"Fuck off!" Mick growled "I didn't fall, fucking old people fall"

"Well Mick that's what happened, it's understandable at your age" Sophie soothed, she went to stroke his hair but his whipped his head out of the way to avoid her touch.

"Fuck you girlie, I'm not fucking old, I didn't fucking fall, old people fall I'm not ready for the scrap heap yet!" Mick yelled at her, suddenly he cried out in pain clutching his side at the sudden movement.

Sophie sighed, she hated it when Mick was in pain it made him more crabby than usual. It made him act like a bear with a sore head, Sophie guessed it had something to do with feeling vulnerable around her it made him irritable, he hated feeling weak around her and it made him mad.

"I'm not saying you are" Sophie sighed "I know you're hurting Mick but please don't take it out on me" Mick sighed and threw his head back into his pillow.

"I'm sorry girlie, I just... I get so stir crazy stuck here" Mick sighed, Mick was a get up and go man, he loved the outdoors and hated being stuck inside.

"I know you do but you're not fit for anything except rest right now" Sophie said touching his hand "I could have lost you Mick" She said biting her bottom lip as tears stung her eyes. True the rest of the world would be better off without him but she loved him.

"I just can't wait to be able to get back out there and hunt again" Mick signed, looking at his leg in a splint. Sophie's face looked grim although she had to praise Mick for his optimism and enthusiasm for getting back out there.

"Mick... I" Sophie sighed, Mick glared at her and Sophie braced herself for a roller coaster ride of his anger. "Mick I don't think you should hunt no more" She said with hesitation and concern.

"What!" Mick snapped.

"Mick you're not as quick as you used to be, you almost killed yourself. You had a fall I don't think it's safe for you to hunt no more"

"Fuck you Sophie, fuck you, get the fuck out. I am not fucking done" Mick roared, Mick cried out and panted out of breath in pain.

"Mick, relax please you're going to hurt yourself" Sophie soothed stroking his hair.

"Get off me, sounds like you care you're ready to throw me in a fucking care home, well I'm not fucking dead yet I'll show you"

"Mick please" Sophie begged.

"No just leave, I... I don't want to see you right now" Sophie fought back tears as she left the bedroom, fighting with him would only cause him more pain and get him more angry. When he was in a mood like that it was best to leave him alone for a while to calm down. Mick folded him arms in anger and grumbled to himself, he'd show Sophie that there was still life in the old dog yet.


	6. chapter 6

While Sophie was making some soup and coffee for Mick she started to hear some thudding sounds. Sophie signed and rolled her eyes wondering what Mick was up to now. Thinking that he couldn't possibly be up to anything serious she poured the soup into the bowl and laid out the tea onto a tray before walking upstairs.

Sophie walked in to find Mick stood up on one leg, leaning heavily onto the bedside table clutching his side with the other hand.

"Mick what the hell are you doing?" Sophie gasped. Mick was panting and covered in sweat in pain.

"I've had enough I'm getting the fuck outta here" Mick groaned.

"Mick you can't walk"

"No? I'll fucking show you, I'm not ready to lay down and rot in here I'm still as strong as I used to be" Sophie signed and rolled her eyes admitting defeat. Sometimes you just had to leave Mick on his own to realise that he was wrong and figure it out for himself.

"Go on then walk if you think you can walk" Sophie said holding out her arm towards the door challenging him.

Mick gritted his teeth in determination as he took a step forward. He yelled out in pain as his leg threatened to give way, Sophie rushed to him and held him up before he ended up in a heap on the floor.

"Fuck that hurt" Mick panted as she helped him back into bed.

"Yeah well maybe next time you'll listen to me" Sophie snapped. "Maybe we should get you some pain meds" She said as she tucked him back into bed.

"No! You keep that fucking shit away from me you know how it messes with my head" Mick said glaring at her. Mick hated pain medications they made him feel powerless and vulnerable as it made him feel spaced out. And when he did finally get to sleep with the pain gone, it made his nightmares all too real and the medication made him unable to wake up and escape them like he normally would.

Sophie signed, Mick was so stubborn it was almost like he had to make an argument about everything.

"You haven't slept since I got you here"

"I'm fine!" He snapped, he would prove to her that he wasn't old yet.

"Having pain killers doesn't make you old Mick, I'm just trying to look after you"

"I said I'm fine!" Sophie signed with defeat sometimes Mick didn't know what was good for him.

By the end of the day towards the evening Mick wasn't doing very well, he was in pain and he was exhausted. He knew he was going to have to have some medication but he was dreading it. He was desperate for sleep but the pain wouldn't let him.

"Girlie get the drugs" Mick groaned.

"But you said..."

"I said drug me!" He said laying his head back further into the pillow and closed his eyes, breathing heavily.

It was everything Mick hated, he hated needles, he hated medication and he hated being sedated but he was at his wits end from the pain.

"OK, OK just hang on I'll go and get it" Sophie said walking into the bathroom and going into the medicine cabinet. It was full of all different stollen medicines, being in Micks line of work he never knew what kind of injuries he'd get from victims so he was always prepared. It was his motto for surviving the outback.

Sophie sat on the bed beside him, Mick was still lying with his head back eyes closed as she filled the syringe.

"Right you're going to feel a slight scratch OK?" Sophie said warning him, Mick nodded his head.

"You're going to be OK Mick" She said soothingly, giving his greying hair a few gentle strokes "Whatever happens you're going to be fine" Mick took a deep breath in and nodded. Slowly Sophie inserted the needle causing Mick to screw up his face.

"There all done" Mick exhaled his held breath as she pulled out the needle.

Mick knew he was never going to live that down, asking for pain medication was something he never did but the pain was unbearable. He was just going to have to prove to Sophie there was still life in the old dog yet, once he got better. For now all he could do was ride the waves of the sedative.

* * *


End file.
